Sega Sports NHL2K is the first hockey simulation for the next generation of game consoles and is the first release from Canadian developer, Black Box Games. Producer Douglas Tronsgard generously took some time out of his busy schedule to discuss the game and the development process with us, among other things.

The Dreamcast, for example, launched with as many as five racing titles; each offering a suitable showing in both the graphics and speed departments. But, to little surprise, amid the games flashy visuals, there was little in terms of innovation or fun gameplay. Speed Devils, on the other hand, presents us with quite the opposite scenario; the game won't wow you with stunning graphics, but its arcade gameplay may be just deep enough to add up to a good time.

In critiquing Maken X, I am surprised I went this long without blasting the game's overall look. Although the game is rendered with crisp, high-resolution graphics, it is ruined by the choice of character designs and models. Being the anime fan I am, I have no problem with Asmik Ace keeping the anime-look and porting it into a three-dimensional environment. After all Capcom and Square have done it wonderfully with Power Stone and Final Fantasy VIII respectively, and the games were the better for it. The one caveat is that the designs must be appealing to begin with.

Of all the games released that are based on hit titles in their respective genres, few escape the stigma of being a clone or rehash. Those that do usually do so because either there is such a dearth of that type of game on a system, or that the developer did such a great overall job that the similarities can be ignored. In the case of Vanark, it is such an underwhelming game, that as a whole it cannot shine.

Within minutes of loading up Vanark, I can clearly see where the game draws most of its inspirations. Star Fox, Resident Evil, Wing Commander and Star Wars are just a few of the major themes that Vanark boldly borrows from. Unfortunately, in the process of co-opting all its ideas from other games, Vanark fails to define its own identity and pushes the term "generic" to all highs (or is it lows?).

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